The present invention relates to a film sticking method and an apparatus, and more particularly relates to an art effective for a base plate for the printed circuit board of an electronic machine such as a computer.
An apparatus for sticking a stratified film to each of base plates for printed circuit boards as the base plates are conveyed one after another on a roller conveyor or the like and the continuous stratified film is cut off to a length corresponding to that of the base plate was disclosed in the Japanese patent application (OPI) No. 200991/88 (the term "OPI" as used herein means an "unexamined published application"). The film cutter of the film sticking apparatus is a moving cutter having a rotary cutting disk, which is moved across the stratified film.
Since the stratified film is cut off by the rotary cutting disk of the moving cutter mentioned above, a chip, a particle or the like is made from the film and clings to the surface of the base plate, to which the resist film of the stratified film is already stuck or yet to be stuck. This is a problem. The chip, the particle or the like can cling to the reception groove of the cutter, a film suction groove, a film suction hole or the like. This is also a problem. If the chip, the particle or the like clings to the base plate, light undergoes diffused reflection due to the chip, the particle or the like to lower the accuracy of exposure to the light in making a wiring pattern on the base plate. This is also a problem. Although it is conceivable to move a knife-like cutter across the film from the side edge thereof to cut off the film so as to solve the above problems, the film is distorted or curled at the side edge thereof due to the local forces applied to the film to make it difficult to smoothly insert the cutter into the side edge of the film from the outside and to make it likely that the film fails to be cut off or is improperly cut off. This is also a problem.